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Swiss Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan has been sentenced to 18 years in prison by a Paris criminal court for rapes committed against three women between 2009 and 2016.
Tried in absentia and behind closed doors, Ramadan did not attend the hearings, which began in early March. His lawyers cited a hospitalization in Geneva linked to his multiple sclerosis, but a medical assessment found him fit to appear. The court therefore decided to proceed in his absence.
On Tuesday, the public prosecutor had requested the same sentence, along with an arrest warrant and a permanent ban from French territory once the sentence is served.
On Wednesday, Ramadan’s lawyers boycotted the hearing after their request to postpone the trial by one week was rejected. «The trial ends as it began, as a farce. While the facts were strongly contested, the severity of the sentence, combined with a permanent ban from French territory, reflects a relentless pursuit against Tariq Ramadan. The defense is justified in refusing to legitimize this mockery of justice», said his lawyer Ouadie Hamamouchi, contacted by Yabiladi.
The case involves three plaintiffs, including Henda Ayari, who filed the initial complaint in 2017. Ramadan denies the allegations, while acknowledging what he described as «passionate sexual relations», which he claims were consensual.
Already sentenced in Switzerland to three years in prison, with one year to be served, for similar charges, Ramadan has been involved in multiple legal proceedings related to sexual violence allegations for nearly a decade.
